"Only 20 Minutes" (2011 film)
"Only 20 Minutes" was a 2011 action film based on actual events from The Owariasahi Walk of September 10, 2010, starring Sanka Wijesinghe, making his acting debut in this film. Overview Being an action film, many of the actual events being depicted were exaggerated and dramatized for a good storyline, incorporating alien invasions, ninja raids, gangster shootouts, snake attacks, and spontaneous drive-bys throughout the film. The script originally called for a nude scene from Wijesinghe, but was cut due to time constraints. When asked how long the duration of the film was, Wijesinghe only replied "It's only a 20-minute movie." The film itself lasted 5 hours with a 30-minute intermission in between. Filming took place in Moriyama, Owariasahi, and Fujigaoka areas in Nagoya. The premiere was held at the Midland Square Cinema in Nagoya, Japan. Wijesinghe was reportedly 20 minutes late to the premiere. Cast *Sanka Wijesinghe *Rikuto Yamazaki *Rik Aikman *Tak Suzuki *Stephen Huang Plot The film begins at a school at Moriyama, where former naval captain Sanka Wijesinghe (playing himself) and several other characters including Rikuto Yamazaki, Stephen Huang, Tak Suzuki, and Rik Aikman come under attack by alien hordes during the middle of class. The school is eventually overrun and subsequently vaporized by a UFO floating over the city, not before the five protagonists escape. When asked how they are going to destroy the UFO, Wijesinghe replies that he knows an armory in Owariasahi "about 20 minutes from here", where he could use a rocket launcher and destroy the UFO. The five make their way down Moriyama. They later reach a bus stop to wait for a bus to go to Owariasahi, in which they wait endlessly for 40 minutes because Yamazaki read the wrong bus schedule. Instead, a bus arrives full of ninjas who leap out and attack the team, attempting to decapitate them with katanas. A black Cadillac Escalade rolls up from behind, as its occupants fire their Glock pistols into the bus, killing the ninjas and saving the group. The group explain to the occupants their plan to destroy the UFO. The occupants agree, and they ride to Owariasahi. During the ride, they later discover that the occupants of the car are actually gangsters. Excited, Yamazaki points out that Wijesinghe is a gangster, to which the gangsters mistake him as a member of a rival gang. Yamazaki is shot in the process, and the remaining four bail out of the vehicle and end up at Owariasahi Station. They continue on foot through a jungle, where a venomous snake bites Aikman. As the snake turns to attack Wijesinghe, his hair gel impales the snake through the jaw, killing it instantaneously. The team drags a wounded Aikman out of the jungle. Nighttime falls, and they eventually arrive at the armory. Realizing that it had been raided by the gangsters they met, they must track down the gangsters' Escalade and steal back the rocket launcher. They find out that the gangsters are at McDonald's, and proceeds in tracking them down. Upon arrival, Wijesinghe locates the Escalade, in which Huang and Suzuki make their way down to hijack the car and recover the rocket launcher. They successfully reach the car, until the gangsters begin to approach the Escalade. The two hide in the trunk and are eventually noticed. A firefight erupts as the UFO looming overhead detects the activity and vaporizes the car, obliterating Suzuki, Huang, and the gangsters inside, along with the rocket launcher. Out of options, Wijesinghe and Aikman flee, with the UFO in hot pursuit. Due to Aikman's injuries, he must be carried by Wijesinghe. Aikman succumbs to the snake's venom during the chase, and Wijesinghe evades the UFO by switching clothes with Aikman's body, confusing the UFO. Wijesinghe remembers that there is a second armory in Fujigaoka, to which he continues his walk. After being ambushed and chased by more ninjas, Wijesinghe finally reaches the armory, and mounts a machine gun to lay down fire. The UFO hears the machine gun fire and returns, to which Wijesinghe realizes that there is no time to kill the ninjas and prepares to aim with the rocket launcher. Before he can lock on and fire, he is hit by a shuriken to the face. However, a plot twist reveals that Yamazaki had survived the gangster shootout in the car by playing dead. He arrives on the scene, kills the ninjas, picks up the launcher, and destroys the UFO. As he walks away from the explosion, the UFO crashes onto him and the screen fades to black and the credits roll. Reception Critical Response The film received negative reviews with critics claiming that "Wijesinghe's performance in the movie was poor and beyond taste, bar none", whilst another critic mentioned that "his repetitive and constant use of hair gel in the film distracted audiences too much of what was actually going on in the story." The film has been noted for its poor quality, with reviewers calling out its nonsensical plot and, in particular, its special effects, consisting entirely of poorly-rendered CGI ninjas, aliens, and UFO's. One specific critic smartly pointed out the bad dialogue, saying that Wijesinghe's only lines in the film were "Don't worry, guys. It's only 20 minutes." Another critic said that "the plot was just fucking random". 20 Minutes received a 2-star rating on IMDb and had a gross revenue of $50,000 after using a $1 million budget. Response by the Cast & Crew Wijesinghe thought that the film was a success despite the negativity, and expressed interest in making a sequel titled "20 Minutes Later...". The proposal was turned down. Wijesinghe then decided to star in a second film to regain his star status, only to have it score less ratings than "Only 20 Minutes". The director of the film later committed seppuku a week after the film's first screening in response to its negative reviews.